I just got the latest release, and one thing that irritates me is how the minimap remains fixed when you are clicking on it and moving to quickly get to the opposite end of the course. This isn't a big issue on smaller levels, but for large levels, it makes it quite annoying to quickly scroll from one edge of the screen to the other. I think this should be fixed.
This was done to avert the issue where as you move your mouse, the map scrolls, thus in turn meaning you're now on a different part of the map, repeat until you have an almost instant scroll to the other extreme with no inbetween (especially for vertical scrolling).
If the original behaviour was preferred, I can look at something more similar to it.
Minimap should never scroll. :lem-mindblown: Minimap should show 100 % of the map.
-- Simon
Even better idea! Even if we go back to all one-color pixels on minimap, this would be preferable.
Quote from: Simon on April 12, 2017, 03:32:28 PM
Minimap should never scroll. Minimap should show 100 % of the map.
I wonder how well this works on a very high, not very wide level? This suggestion calls for a lot of user testing, before making this change to a stable release.
@Simon: It usually doesn't. The level can be up to, IIRC, about 900x280 before the minimal will scroll at all.
Regarding the possibility of a dynamic scale to avert this, it should be fairly straightforward to implement, but Nepster is correct about the potential for it to be impractical in cases of tall, narrow levels. These are a minority, but they do exist.
I'd rather have an incredibly ugly minimap than not be able to quickly and precisely move across the screen.
I'm not liking this new "scrolling minimap" either. I'd rather go back to the old way.
EDIT: wait, hold on I'm very confused about all this after re-reading the title of the thread and Arty's comment. So was there something else when he posted and in the latest release; it's been changed to the way it currently is? If So, I still don't like this, and I'd prefer the old, old way to this. [single color etc.] The new colors are nice, but the scrolling/weirdness is not. I have version 10.13.16
I don't have any ideas on a solution for tall levels. Oh wait, I do, but as usual probably no one will like it; but I will tell it anyway, and maybe keep pestering you with it just to be a pest.
If a level is very tall but not wide; the minimap (and possible the entire menu bar) can fit on the left or ride side of the screen vertically, instead of horizontally.
This of course, doesn't solve the problem of what to do about a level that is both large vertically and horizontally.
IMO: one of the major purposes of the minimap is to be able to SEE the whole level, if it's larger than one screen. On single screen levels (or almost single screen levels) this doesn't matter and in fact I wouldn't care if the minimap didn't exist on those levels.
But on larger levels it's needed. I wouldn't mind if it was in the form of a box that opened up or just got larger when hovering over it.
Quote from: möbius on April 16, 2017, 12:37:33 AM
If a level is very tall but not wide; the minimap (and possible the entire menu bar) can fit on the left or ride side of the screen vertically, instead of horizontally.
Gut reaction: Excellent design. Very elaborate, very taxing on screen space, but by definition reserved only for the levels that don't need horizontal space.
If it's too elaborate, maybe it's OK to ignore tall, narrow levels in the design? Let the standard minimap excel at 98 % of levels, and worry about corner cases afterwards.
Or this:
(http://www.lixgame.com/etc/nl-tall-minimap.png)
<SimonN> yes, I know you suggested something else, that's why I put "or this:"
<mobius`> I don't like games where the HUD takes over too much space on the screen
<mobius`> so smaller = better
<SimonN> yeah, my yellow area is probably too much [= my suggestion in the right image is bad]
QuoteThis of course, doesn't solve the problem of what to do about a level that is both large vertically and horizontally.
That's the same aspect ratio as a onescreener, therefore the standard minimap should fit.
Even Icho stops at about 6 times the area of onescreener.
-- Simon